The Boy with the Blue Hair
by Toystory242
Summary: On a seemingly normal day at Fairy Tail, Cana comes to Erza with a haunting card read of the future, one that brings one name to Erza's mind. Jellal. Takes place after the Tower of Heaven. Spoilers if you haven't gotten that far!
1. Prologue--The Card Reading

**_"It was the color of your hair."_**

Everything in Fairy Tail was normal. Or, at least, as normal as things could ever get in their guild. Natsu _was _trying to burn off the roof, and Juvia _was _hiding behind a pole looking at Gray (who was in his boxers), and Mira _was _smiling as Elfman and Evergreen argued over who knows what.

So, for Fairy Tail, things were pretty normal. Even more so as Erza observed Gray get up from his barstool and strut over to Natsu, tapping him on the shoulder and telling him to cut it out and that, "Holy _hell_, you firey dipshit, you're going to burn the whole place down and then we'll have to rebuild it again."

Which led Natsu to coming back with, "I can do whatever I want, you icicle, now shut your ass and put some clothes on!"

Erza would usually intervene, but decided not to today, as she was enjoying a slice of cake.

"Erza?"

"Hmm?" She looked over her shoulder to find Cana, looking slightly distressed. She was holding a couple of her cards in-between her fingers.

"I think you'll want to look at this." Cana placed one of the cards on the table. "The man, the one at the Tower of Heaven…he had blue hair, right? And a red tattoo over one eye?"

Erza's blood ran cold. Her heart beat pounded in her ears like a drum. _Jellal. _Her best friend when she had been a slave. The one who had given her a last name. The one who saved her.

And also the one who had murdered Simon.

Something had been wrong with him. He had not been Jellal. The thought of possession had crossed her mind, but she didn't like to think about him, or the image of his awful, evil smile would creep into her mind.

"Yes…"

Cana swiped a finger across the card, and a projection appeared in front of her.

It was Jellal, tilting his head to the side and smiling. And that smile was not the one that haunted her. That was a _real _one. He reached his hand out, and an armored hand grasped it. _Her _armored hand. Then the projection simmered, and it, again, was Jellal, except, this time, he was shirtless, and his usually dark green eyes were as red as blood.

Then the projection got fuzzy and disappeared. Erza picked up the card. "What does this mean?" she asked Cana, her voice hardly above a whisper.

"I don't know, but my cards are never wrong. I want you to be careful, alright?"

Erza nodded, feeling numb. "Could I keep this?"

"The card? Sure. I have plenty extras. Just hit the circle on the bottom if you want to play it again."

That night, Erza watched the projection over and over and over.

_"Scarlet! Erza…Scarlet!"_

The tears were there before she could stop them. She had to put the card down before they splashed all over it.

Because she couldn't keep the boy with the blue hair and tattoo that she had though was so strange out of her mind.

**Alright everyone...I'm going through a Jellal obsession at the moment. JERZA. (I watch the anime, so, for anyone who reads the manga DON'T SPOIL ANYTHING). But, yeah, I kinda know where this is going...kinda. Tell me if you like :) It's obviously going to be Jerza, and I also ship all the classic things (Gruvia, Nalu, Gale) so expect tidbits of those too. **


	2. Chapter 1--Dreaming of Dancing

The next day, Natsu came up to Erza with a piece of paper, Happy flying by his head. "HEY ERZA! I've got this job! We haven't done one in a while, and Lucy needs her rent, so…"

"I think I'm going to skip this one, Natsu."

"Huh? Why?"

"I'm just not in the mood."

"Are you okay? You look tired."

She _was _tired. She had hardly gotten any sleep, and when she _had _managed to doze off, all she had was nightmares filled of images of Jellal with eyes the color of blood. "I'm fine, Natsu."

Natsu continued to look at her curiously, then whispered to Happy, "I think she's tired. Maybe it's my time to fight her?"

Anger boiled in Erza's stomach. She stood, making quite a bit of racket in the process, and pushed past Natsu, crossing to the opposite side of the guild.

Gray approached her as well, hands in pockets, saying something like, "Hey, we going on that job…?" but she pushed past him as well.

Maybe she'd just go back to her dorm. Maybe she'd burn that card of Cana's. Maybe Cana was wrong.

But Erza knew that Cana was not wrong. Cana's cards were never wrong.

So why was Jellal in Erza's future? He was _dead. _

She didn't know what to do. She wanted to sit down and cry, really. Just cry and cry and think about the blue-haired boy she loved and had lost.

She opened the guild's front door, storming out into the fresh air, hoping that the booze-free air would help get herself back together.

It didn't, of course.

Erza didn't know when she had started loving him. It was when she was a slave, trapped in the tower, she knew that part, but exactly when? Exactly when she had realized? That she could never pinpoint. Maybe it was when he had saved her, when he had been her hero, had taken the sword much too big for him and practically carried her down the hallway, telling her that it was okay because he was with her now, that he had her.

Or maybe it had been when it was too late.

When she had lost him.

When he turned around, a purple fog encasing him, with eyes and a smile that screamed a warning, that screamed that he _was not _and _could not _be her Jellal, and the tears were immediate in her eyes.

_Yes,_ she realized rather suddenly, _that was the moment, wasn't it?_

That smile. That horrible smile. That smile haunted her. It was the thing that told her that her Jellal was really and truly lost, replaced with a monster. The moment after he had used _magic _on her, when he had gripped her chin in fingers that were the opposite of gentle and whispered horrible words in her ear.

Later, when she woke up on the beach and clawed the sand in anger, crying to the sky, that's when she realized.

She loved him, and he was gone.

Erza always liked to think that he had possessed. He showed the signs of it, and…

If that had really been Jellal?

Erza didn't like to think about that.

She liked the thought that he had returned to his normal self in his last moments, and saved her once again, along with her friends.

Her very best friends.

Not just her old ones from the tower, but the ones at Fairy Tail. She tried to focus on them instead of Jellal and her love and pain and even hatred towards him.

Natsu. Lucy. Gray.

Gray had saved her when she had first arrived at the guild.

Natsu had saved her at the tower.

And Lucy…that girl always lifted Erza's spirits.

She breathed a sigh. _There, Erza, see? Think of your friends. Don't they make you feel better?_

Mira. Elfman. Juvia. Gajeel, even.

Juvia had been at the tower of heaven, too.

Erza made her way back to the dorm, opened the door into the lobby, and there was Juvia. Of course Erza's thoughts immediately went back to the tower. And Jellal. And his smile.

"Erza-san!" Juvia ran up to her, cheeks red. "Have you seen Gray-sama?"

Erza smiled a little. But it was bitter-sweet. Because she was thinking about how much Juvia loved Gray. And how blue her hair was.

Which made her think of how much she loved Jellal. And how blue his hair was.

_Cut it out! _

She tried to talk herself into thinking that if she took a bath and went to sleep early that maybe she would feel better.

But that hadn't helped the night before, had it?

And she already knew that she was going to look at that card again, despite her mind's furious protests.

"He's at the guild, Juvia."

"Oh good! Juvia will see you later, Erza-san!" Juvia skipped to the doorway, singing Gray's name under her breath.

That night, the dreams got to her again.

She was in a ballroom, wearing a dress, which shocked her. Because she never wore dresses. At least, not often. She could see, near the snack table, there was Gray, in a suit, spinning Juvia, who was also in a dress, in a circle. They were dancing. And they were laughing. That made Erza laugh too.

"Natsu! You stepped on my foot!" Lucy and Natsu spun past her. And they were both smiling, despite Natsu being a horrible dancer. That made Erza smile too.

And Gajeel and Levy…she had never really thought about them together, but there they were, Gajeel so tall and Levy so short, so, so different but making it work anyway. There was Gajeel's laugh. _Geheehee._

Erza was enjoying watching her friends dance. She wished it would go on and on, lasting a lifetime.

But there was someone approaching her. He was wearing a suit too, and he…

Erza suddenly felt like there was something being shoved down her throat. She could scarcly breathe.

Blue hair. And a tattoo over his right eye.

"Here you are! I was looking for you. Didn't I say to wait for me by the bathrooms?" He put a glass of punch in her hand.

She looked at it, mystified. He…had gotten her punch.

"Are you enjoying yourself? It's nice, isn't it? And you look very pretty. Ha! Look at Gajeel dancing. I never imagined that he could dance."

Still, Erza couldn't speak. She stared at the punch, gripping the glass with both hands.

The music changed very suddenly, slowing down, and the air became quiet. She glanced up, seeing that Gray and Juvia weren't really dancing anymore, just swaying, and Juvia's head was on Gray's shoulder. He was kissing her head with his eyes closed.

Her eyes drifted over to Natsu and Lucy. Natsu…he wasn't a slow dancer. But he was doing the same thing, hugging Lucy close to him and swaying, Lucy with both hands against his chest, the tips of her fingers brushing his scarf.

Gajeel and Levy too…Gajeel? Certainly not Gajeel. But there he was, arms around Levy's waist. Swaying.

So much swaying. And love.

"Would you like to do that?" The punch was being taken from her hand now, placed on an unseen object behind her, and strong hands were taking her own.

"Come along, Miss. Scarlet, don't be shy."

_Scarlet. Now who had given her that name?_

She finally looked up, up at the figure that had taken her hands and gotten her punch.

Jellal. _Her _Jellal. He placed her hands on his chest and wrapped his own around her waist. And they…started to sway.

Started to sway like everyone else.

Started to sway like everyone else in love.

Erza looked at her hands, the hands against his chest. _Jellal's _chest. He shifted a little, his head close to her ear now.

His voice tickled.

"I love you, Erza Scarlet."

Erza woke up with a start, gasping, sitting up in her bed. She was sweating, gasping at the air. And…she could still hear the ball's music in her head.

She put her face in her hands and cried.

**Yeah...sorry...nothing really happened in this chapter. I promise it'll get better in the next one! :) And yeah...I'm a serious NaLu, Gruvia, and GaLe shipper...sorry.**


	3. Chapter 2--There He Is

Erza knew she had to get herself together. It had been two days since Cana had given her that card, and Jellal was still not magically appearing into her life.

She would go out on that job with Natsu. With Natsu and Lucy and Gray. Her team; her three best friends. _That _would definitely calm her nerves, right?

Beating up criminals _was _a good system for venting, that was for sure.

She exited the dorm, heading out to the center of Magnolia. On her way to the guild, she ran into Gray and Juvia, who were walking along, side by side. Juvia was blushing furiously, her hand a fist by her side, looking as if it wanted to lash out and grab Gray's. But Gray's hands were crossed over his chest, and he seemed oblivious to Juvia's red cheeks and trembling fingers.

Still, they were walking and talking.

Which brought Erza's memory back to her dream, where they had been swaying. And Gray had been kissing her blue hair.

"Hey Erza!" Gray raised a hand, sighting her and making his way through the crowd, Juvia trailing him. "Are you alright? You seemed pretty shaken yesterday."

Erza nodded. "Yes, I'm fine, thanks." She managed a smile. "Actually, I'm great, and ready for that job that you guys wanted to do."

Gray smiled; a rarity for him. "Oh. Good." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder, pointing in the direction of the guild. "Should I get Natsu and Lucy?"

Erza nodded again.

Juvia's lips turned down in a frown, and she tugged on Gray's sleeve. "Oh, are you going off again, Gray-sama? You're going to make Juvia worry again?"

"Oh, I'll be fine, Juvia. Just like always." Gray was about to turn around, when he froze very suddenly, his dark blue eyes as wide as saucers.

"Erza?" And she froze as well, both of them as solid as the ice mage's own ice. She _knew _that voice.

Juvia gasped as well, her fingers pressed against her lips. "Gray-sama." She tightened her grip on Gray's sleeve with her other hand.

"Erza!" Someone was spinning her around, and she was facing him.

There he was.

The one she had been dreading, ever since Cana had handed her that card.

But also the one that she wanted to see so very badly.

Jellal.

His face was lit up with a smile, a dazziling smile that was certainly _not _the one that haunted her. It really was him, wasn't it? Blue hair. Dark green eyes. Red tattoo over one of them.

"You!" That was Gray's voice. He had never seen Jellal; it had only been her and Natsu that had faced him, but everyone in the guild knew what he looked like. And Gray had more of a reason to hate him than most, considering he had been in the tower, and also considering how close he was to Erza.

Gray was nothing if not protective. Everyone in the guild was like that.

He ran to Jellal, pushing Erza away from him forcefully. The air hissed and the temperature dropped as Gray raised his hands.

Juvia ran over to Erza, ready to fight as well.

But Erza couldn't do anything.

_Think, stupid! Jellal is stronger than Gray, stronger than _you_, even! Maybe both of you can take him, but Gray alone?_

Something was wrong. Jellal, for one, was supposed to be dead. But this was a world of magic. There could be many solutions to that.

Jellal had tricked her into thinking that he was on her side before. But his face looked so much different than it had in that situation.

So, so much different.

"Hey! You…you're Gray Fullbuster! The ice-mage! I've heard of you!" Jellal stumbled back a bit, eyebrows arched toward each other in confusion.

While Gray's were arched toward each other in anger.

"And I know who you are!" he screamed, and his jacket and shirt were suddenly at Erza's feet. Juvia bent over to pick them up, one hand still poised to attack. "We have to jump him after Gray gets him distracted," she whispered into Erza's ear.

"You're Jellal Feredenez! And you hurt two of my comrades!"

So confused…why did he look so confused? This couldn't be a trick, not anymore, or Jellal would be fighting back by now.

Even more so, Erza could tell. Erza, somehow, could tell that he was not the Jellal from back then, not the one that had done so many horrible things.

Finally she could move. "Gray!" She grabbed his arm, pulling him back.

"Erza! It's-it's _Jellal_. What are you doing!?"

"Gray." She gripped both of his upper arms. "Something is off about him. Please. Let me handle it."

"Erza…"

"Take Juvia back to the guild and make sure Natsu doesn't come out here."

"Wha…?" Gray looked at her uncomprehendingly.

"Please! If Natsu comes out here and sees him, he'll lose it just like you did, except I might not be able to stop him."

Gray continued to stare at her, his dark hair falling over his eyes.

"Please!" She pushed him away from her, and Juvia grabbed his arm, towing him back towards the guild. She cast one last worried glance over her shoulder at Erza.

"Thank you," Erza mouthed.

Then she turned back around.

Jellal was staring at her, eyes wide, blinking rapidly. "What happened?"

"I should be asking _you _that!" She ran over to him, gripping his arm. "Why are you here? Why aren't you dead?"

"Dead!? What the hell are you talking about!?"

Erza looked up into his eyes, his frantic eyes, and took a deep breath. "You…what do you remember?"

Jellal was silent for a moment. Then he took a deep breath. "The tower."

Erza's stomach dropped, but then he continued.

"When we were kids…and…we tried to escape. And we did, but you were hurt and I lost you. And I've been looking for you…forever."

Erza was having trouble breathing. In her mind, she was swaying, his hands around her waist and her hands on his chest. He had been looking for her?

_No. Of course he hadn't. Because he had been at the tower._

She was sure her eyes were full of pity. Fake. Fake memories. "No, Jellal. That's not what happened at all."

**Sorry...all my chapters are really short. But I updated the last one, like, yesterday, so...YEAH. We actually got somewhere in this one! :)**


	4. Chapter 3--Protect Your Friends

_**"I don't care if I'm the weakest person in the world. As long as I have the strength to protect my friends, that's all I need."**_

"No," Jellal's voice was barely above a whisper. His head was in his hands, blue hair peeking through his strong fingers. He clawed at his scalp, tense everywhere.

They were standing in an ally way, as Erza didn't want anyone to see them (Jellal's face was very recognizable, and he was on the magic council's wanted list—she was just glad no one had found him before him.) Jellal was dressed in black pants and a black shirt; very simple, unlike most wizards that Erza knew. Natsu had always worn his black vest, skirt, and white pants attire with sandals and his scarf, and Gray (when he was wearing clothes) usually had some kind of long white cloak and high boots, along with his cross necklace. Even Lucy wore odd combinations of tank tops and boots, while Erza was always in her armor.

But…did Jellal even _know_ he was a wizard? That is, before Erza told him? Because she had told him…everything. Well, everything except Simon. He had obviously lost his memories somehow.

Lost his memories, yes, but that was certainly _not _the most major concern pounding through Erza's mind.

_He's alive._

_ He's alive, and I hate him, I hate him so much._

_ He's alive, and I love him, I love him so much._

A war. A war in her poor, tired, confused head.

"Jellal," she said. "Did you know you were a wizard?"

He lifted his head out of his hands, his eyes glazed over with tears. "No," he breathed. "I didn't know. What…can I do? You…you said I fought you, and your friend Natsu, the Salamander. But with what magic? What magic could it possibly be, if I could face _you _and the _salamander_ on equal footing?"

"You probably still have the power to do it," Erza whispered. "It was strange…a magic I have never seen before; very powerful. You…you could control the heavens, almost. I don't really know. Golden beams and orbs, golden magic circles…"

"Erza…" he said, sobbing a little now. "You believe me, right? Please tell me you believe me. I…I don't remember, I can't…" He lost words, not able to finish.

Erza took a step closer to him, taking his hand and looking up into his eyes. "Jellal," she said. "I cared very much for you when we were children." She couldn't bring herself to say love. "I looked up to you. You were so brave and optimistic. But, I must say, for what you did to me and my friends, in that tower, I hate you. I hate you so much for it. I still hope, I hope very much that it wasn't you. I hope upon hope that you were possessed. Even if that's true…I can't help but forgive you, because it's so very obvious you need my aid.

I'm going to try and help you, Jellal, you understand? But you also must understand that if you try and lay a finger on my friends…" She trailed off for a second, then said, "Gray? You know Gray? That teenager that went up against you? The Ice Mage? He is my friend. He was protecting _me_—he felt that he had to fight you for what you did to me, and what you did to Natsu. If you had touched him, that would've been the end of you. Because I would have gone up against you myself."

Jellal nodded vigorously. "Never, Erza, I would never hurt your friends, I-I would never _do_ any of that, I-I…"

Erza frowned, worried that she had taken it too far. Everything was so hectic, and she was still trying to work everything out in her head. She wanted to help Jellal, but she wanted to keep her friends safe too.

He said he would never hurt her friends, but what about Simon?

But…that couldn't have been Jellal, right?

She stood there, looking at him, trying to figure out what they could possibly do. Where they could possibly stay. Not her room at the dorm; that would mean going through the lobby, which would be full of people, and it was a girls-only place, anyway. Natsu's was definitely out of the question. Lucy's? Maybe. Lucy would listen to her. But Natsu was always showing up in her house. Gray's?

Erza said his name again in her head. He would be pissed, that was for sure. He and Natsu had very similar personalities, but Gray was usually more calm and collected. He would hold back if Erza told him to. Natsu, on the other hand…

Gray's?

Erza had only been to his house a couple times, and had not been for a long while. It was a small house at the edge of Magnolia. It was strange, because he always cranked the air conditioning up to full blast, and whoever went in was bound to freeze their asses off (everyone except for him, who had walked around in boxers whenever she had visited). His backyard was a wreck too, as he practiced his magic back there, and the wet ice had destroyed everything that had been living. She would much rather go to Lucy's, which was much more near the level of normal, but she figured Gray was her only option.

"Jellal," Erza said. "We can't go to my dorm."

Jellal stared at her. "You're going to take me with you?"

"I said I was going to help you, didn't I? But you've got to do your part too. You can't just mope around feeling sorry for yourself, you got that?"

Jellal nodded. "So…" he asked carefully. "Where are we going?"

"Your new friend's. Gray Fullbuster's."

**Uh, yeah, if you haven't guessed...Gray's my favorite character... Sorry if he pops up more than everyone else...he's just...my fav...**

**The next chapter should be longer! And funny, hopefully. I haven't really put much humor in here yet, so...**


	5. Chapter 4--The Ice Mage

Yeah. Gray was pissed.

He answered the door in his boxers, and Jellal took a few tentative steps back. Erza grabbed his arm, whispering into his ear, "Don't worry; he does that all the time."

"Erza…" Gray growled, and the air temperature dropped all around them as his fingers tightened on the door. He was looking at Jellal with such loathe that Jellal was swaying back and forth. "You're lucky I didn't tell Natsu. He beat this asshole once. He could do it again. Even more if I was helping him. Why are you trusting him?"

"Gray," Erza pleaded. "The Jellal that you know was _possessed_. The one here doesn't even remember what he did. He doesn't even know he's a wizard! Please, we need somewhere to stay."

"What? _Here_? No!"

"GRAY!"

Gray held his hands up in fear, blocking his face. "Okay fine, fine!" He opened the door the rest of the way with his foot, backing up into his entryway slowly.

Erza led Jellal in, where Gray continued to aim all of his hatred at him.

"I-it's r-really cold in here," Jellal whispered to her, already shivering.

"I heard that!" Gray cried. "And suck it up!"

"Could you turn up the heat just a little, Gray?" Erza asked.

"No!" He stormed off down the hallway, turning through a door to the right.

She sighed, letting that one go. "Sorry about him," she told Jellal. "But he's the only one I could come to."

"He's a strong wizard?"

For a second, Erza didn't realize it was a question, then, when Jellal stared at her for a few seconds, she jumped and said, "A strong wizard? Oh, yes. One of Fairy Tail's strongest."

"As strong…as…I was?"

Erza shook her head. "No."

Jellal's mouth twisted into a frown, and he started shifting from foot to foot.

Gray came back, this time in a white t-shirt and pants, and with two cups of water. He placed one in Jellal's hand and the other in Erza's, then proceeded to push Jellal into a room off to the left. "In there, pal. Come on, I wanna talk to Erza alone. Is that too much to ask? Yeah. _Move._ That's right. I gave you water, didn't I?" Gray slammed the door in Jellal's face, and spun on Erza, taking her arm and dragging her into his living room.

"Okay, uh, WHAT THE HELL, ERZA!?"

"I'm sorry—I just; hear me out—"

"No, no, I mean, _one_: why is he even _alive_, and _two_: why are falling for everything he says!? He's _tricking _you! Don't you get that?"

"No, Gray, he _isn't_. I can tell!"

"_How _can you tell? Hasn't he tricked you before?"

"It's just…I don't know. His emotions seem so well, so past the point of acting. Can you please just…look after him until I figure something out?"

"Whoa, _wait,_ you're going to _leave _now?"

Erza clasped her hands together, something very unlike her character. All of this was out of character for her. "Gray. I beg of you. Tell me: what would you do if Jellal was Juvia?"

"Huh? What?"

"_If_." Erza was having trouble now. She had never told anyone of her love for Jellal. Not really. But she needed Gray's help. And this was the only way, wasn't it? She could try to threaten him, but he wouldn't really be 100% on her side if she did that, wouldn't he? "If…Jellal was…Juvia. If Juvia did all of the things that Jellal has done."

Gray looked at her with wide eyes.

"You love Juvia, don't you?"

Gray held a hand out, smiling nervously. "Uh, hold on, what? Love? Love is a _bbbiiiggggg_ word, Erza, I wouldn't say—"

"Do you love Juvia!?"

"Yes!" Gray squeaked, then his eyes widened some more.

Erza pointed towards the room that Jellal was in. "Well, Gray, I love him. And…when you love someone, you can tell."

Gray, looked shocked, shook his head. "You couldn't tell before, Erza," he whispered.

Erza looked at her feet. "I _wanted_ to believe then, I _still _want to believe. I…don't know, Gray. But this time…I don't think it's a trick. Please."

And Gray nodded.

And Erza left.

Oh, why had she left?

**HOHOHO CLIFFHANGER LADIES AND GENTLEMEN. Prepare to buckle up for exciment!**


	6. Chapter 5--Deloria, Deloria, Deloria

Gray was very unhappy. Well, he was _usually _unhappy, or at least bored, but this was a whole new level of shit that bugged the crap out of him.

He was standing in front of Jellal, holding his own cup of water, trembling greatly. He felt that if he clenched his teeth anymore, they would explode into tiny white pieces.

"Um," Jellal said, shifting on the guestroom bed. "Thank you, Mr. Fullbuster."

"Oh shut up. I'm doing this for Erza. Not you. So no thanks necessary."

Jellal looked at the floor. "I've heard you're very good at magic."

Gray tensed, eyes wide. "You have?"

Jellal nodded. "Yes. That you are one of Fairy Tail's strongest."

Gray scratched the back of his head. "Um. Okay."

"Erza said that I was a very strong wizard too."

_Why is he trying to have a conversation with me? _

"Yes," Gray said carefully. "You were. You probably still are."

Jellal snapped his head up. "What could I do? What _did _I do? Erza wouldn't tell me."

Gray stared at him, unblinking. He raised his chin up slightly. "You hurt her. You hurt all of us. You tried to sacrifice her for your stupid…stupid…_Tower_. Your little subordinates tried to kill us all, you were playing this _game_…If Natsu hadn't beaten you, we'd all be dead. Except _you_."

Jellal had tears in his eyes, but Gray pressed on, because he was angry now. "And Erza…you made her cry, and Erza _never _cries. I made sure of that. And Erza thought you were possessed, that you blew up the tower in your last moments of life, and now you're alive, so I think that bit is bullshit, even if she doesn't. Erza's not falling into your arms, I promise you that, Jellal. She's being hopeful, but Erza's also very strong. Stronger than _you_, that's for sure."

Jellal nodded, a tear slipping down his cheek. "I…don't want to remember."

Gray pursed his lips. His mind was doing front flips in confusion. Jellal's emotions seemed real, but he could've also just been doing a very good acting job. Erza seemed to think it was the former. "You'll stay in here for now. I'm making tacos for dinner. I'll make some extra. Okay?"

Jellal looked up at him gratefully and nodded. "Thank you," he whispered as Gray closed the door.

Gray shook his head and huffed out a breath as he walked down the hall and to his kitchen, where he started preparing dinner. Maybe he should call Juvia. She would probably help him out, talk him through this, right? Maybe Lucy too, but she might tell Natsu, and if Natsu knew…that would be very, very bad.

He stood, shredding cheese very angrily, casting glances down the hallway.

After about fifteen minutes, he let his guard down and finished up. He heard footsteps behind him and said, not turning around, "I'm almost done. You can sit at the kitchen table. Don't touch anything, you got that?"

There was a shuffle, and then, "Don't worry. I won't."

Gray raised his head from what he was doing, very slowly. _That _didn't sound right. He spun around, one hand gripped around a knife and another poised for battle.

Jellal was standing there, smiling, black shadows under his very bright red eyes. Power was emanating from him like a light bulb.

"Wha…?"

What the hell had just happened?

"Gray Fullbuster. While I must say you are powerful, you are not a match for me." That voice was very different from Jellal's.

Gray threw the knife at his leg, but Jellal caught it on the blade, dropping it, some of his blood going with it. "Ow."

Gray slammed his hands together and screamed, "ICE MAKE LANCE!" With a crack, the weapons shot towards Jellal, but there was some sort of gold-black field that popped up around him that just made it explode and rocket back at Gray, sharp, tiny pieces of ice imbedding themselves in his body.

He groaned, blood dripping down his bare skin. Backing up against the counter, he called out another spell, a cannon, but it had the same effect. He wasn't stupid enough to try again.

"Jeez." Jellal advanced, picking out a piece of ice that had trapped itself in Gray's arm. "You're already beaten up."

"What the _hell_, Jellal? Have you just been acting, this whole time?"

Jellal tilted his head to one side. "Acting? No, I haven't done any acting." He moved his hand forward, but Gray snatched his wrist, pouring all of his magic power onto it, trying to freeze him, but his hand started burning, and he screamed, yanking it away.

He turned his shaking hand over; it was burned and bloody, hurting like hell.

"I remember you, I think. Your presence. You tried to battle Deloria."

Gray felt like someone had punched all of the air out of his being. Deloria. Deloria, Deloria, Deloria.

The thing that had ruined his life and left him a shell, a broken and cracked thing on the side of the road. The thing that had also taken his foster mother away from him and driven his foster brother mad.

His head started spinning.

"_Zeref_."

And Gray could no longer move or breath or anything, and Zeref moved his hand forward and Gray couldn't stop it, and then he was collapsing, falling onto more of his shattered ice.

**Sorry that I haven't updated in a while...and even left you with a cliffhanger. I'm cruel. I'm a horrible human being. Actually, I'm not too bad, because here's the next chapter! **

**Enjoy :3 **

**Tell me what you think!**


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